World Cup 2010 Blog: “Soundoff: Would You Eliminate World Cup Draws?” plus 1 more

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Soundoff: Would You Eliminate World Cup Draws? Posted: 16 Aug 2010 02:30 PM PDT Though the World Cup is no stranger to structural changes – 18 World Cups, 18 World Cup rulebooks, it seems – the announcement that FIFA may eliminate draws for the World Cup is still a thumping headline for an organization which has balked at some much desired rule changes recently. FIFA president Sepp Blatter says consideration is being given to scrapping the draw at the World Cup by bringing in a penalty shootout after 90 minutes or using the golden goal in extra time. Blatter said Saturday on Germany’s Focus weekly that the changes could make the tournament more interesting, claiming teams “above all do not want to lose — that makes for a boring game.” The immediate thought of more penalty shootouts forces a cringe, since it’s so often a cruel roll of the dice to determine the victor, and golden goal isn’t far behind after witnessing a World Cup with so many suspect goal decisions on almost a daily basis. (Priorities, Sepp.) But it would certainly make the game more exciting, less cautious and, to a point, reward the more adventurous teams, though you’d still get a number of teams hoping for the fluke goal and/or penalties and the balance of power would shift away from the Cinderella even further. So what’s your say? Would this be a good or bad move for the future of football’s grand occasion?

Euro 2012 Qualifying Hath Commenced Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:45 AM PDT It feels like just yesterday Spain were dominating possession, peppering balls towards the opposition’s box and keeping the Spanish public on edge right until the very end. Probably because it was just yesterday, but it also feels like the World Cup ended yesterday too. Time to turn the page. International friendlies made their return, but so did something of far greater significance: European qualifying. It feels like 2012’s wannabes should be years away, but the kickoff date has come and gone, with a battle of powerhouses the Faroe Islands & Estonia firmly tucked into the Completed folder. However, the entree portion of the meal will begin on September 3rd, with some intriguing matchups (the battle of youth in Belgium v Germany) and some intriguing public massacres (Liechtenstein v Spain, for example). So mark your calendars where appropriate.

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World Cup 2010 Blog: “Euro 2012 Qualifying Hath Commenced” plus 1 more

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Euro 2012 Qualifying Hath Commenced Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:45 AM PDT It feels like just yesterday Spain were dominating possession, peppering balls towards the opposition’s box and keeping the Spanish public on edge right until the very end. Probably because it was just yesterday, but it also feels like the World Cup ended yesterday too. Time to turn the page. International friendlies made their return, but so did something of far greater significance: European qualifying. It feels like 2012’s wannabes should be years away, but the kickoff date has come and gone, with a battle of powerhouses the Faroe Islands & Estonia firmly tucked into the Completed folder. However, the entree portion of the meal will begin on September 3rd, with some intriguing matchups (the battle of youth in Belgium v Germany) and some intriguing public massacres (Liechtenstein v Spain, for example). So mark your calendars where appropriate.

David Beckham’s England Career – Disappointment and Dedication Posted: 12 Aug 2010 07:36 AM PDT David Beckham’s England career, which began way back in 1996 against Moldova (call-up photo with then England manager Glenn Hoddle is to your left) received its notice of termination from Fabio Capello yesterday. Not a huge surprise. Beckham is 35 years old and won’t be any younger by the time Euro 2012 gets here, and the English public, media and just plain old common sense demands an infusion of fresh talent. But seems a little harsh that Beckham wasn’t informed prior to the announcement. Asked whether he had telephoned the midfielder to tell him that he would no longer be selected for competitive games, Capello said: “No. No. But I think I will speak with him. We tried to speak with him. I think David knows that he has no future with the national team because we have to change. Probably someone has rung him now before I called him. We tried to speak with him, but we haven’t managed to. Softening the blow a little, Capello will offer Beckham the chance to play for England at Wembley one more time, in a friendly that basically be Becks’ final farewell to international football. Most likely that will be the England vs France friendly in November. Beckham will retire as England’s second most capped player in history. He has 115 appearances now, and will make that 116 if he plays in the promised friendly. As an England fan I’d argue that Beckham’s international career has been oddly disappointing, since he never really performed at an international tournament. But what I would congratulate Beckham for is a genuine dedication to his national team. At a time when players routinely pull out of friendlies and retire/unretire from international football whenever it suits them (looking at you Zlatan Ibrahimovic), David Beckham has been consistently willing to serve his national team whenever called upon and in whatever capacity.

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